What are words like confront, without an extremely negative connotation?

I’m looking for a word like confront– where it has a slightly negative connotation like it’s something that is uncomfortable, but not extremely bad.

I had to __________ people who weren’t doing their work.
The CEO had to _______ some of the problems in the work place.

The other Thesaurus synonyms are:

defy — no, it’s more like speaking to someone instead of defying them

encounter — this is too neutral

meet — neutral

oppose — again, it’s like a conversation, not an opposition.